Player-by-player look at the Web.com graduates

Player-by-player look at the Web.com graduates

A look at the 25 players who graduated to the PGA Tour from this year’s Web.com Tour:

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1. Casey Wittenberg

Age: 27

College: Oklahoma State

Birthplace: Memphis, Tenn.

The skinny: Wittenberg, the 2003 U.S. Amateur runner-up, won his first two Web.com Tour titles this season and finished in the top 25 in 12 of 24 starts, including eight top 10s. He also finished 10th at the U.S. Open. He finished 159th on the money list in his only PGA Tour season (2009). He finished 13th in the 2004 Masters as an amateur. His father, Jim, was a collegiate golfer at LSU who played two seasons (1975 and 1977) on the PGA TOUR. Wittenberg’s eight top 10s rank second-most on tour this season.

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2. Luke Guthrie*

Age: 22

College: Illinois

Birthplace: Quincy, Ill.

The skinny: Guthrie, who turned pro after this year’s NCAA Championship, quickly found success on the PGA and Web.com tours. He finished in the top 20 in his first seven starts on the two tours, then won back-to-back Web.com Tour starts in September. Guthrie was an All-American in his final two seasons at Illinois, and became the first back-to-back Big Ten champ since Northwestern’s Luke Donald in 2000-01. Guthrie finished in the top 3 in four of 10 Web.com Tour starts this year, including seven top-10s. He tied for third on tour in top 10s despite his limited schedule. He is No. 49 in the Golfweek/Sagarin pro rankings.

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3. Russell Henley*

Age: 23

College: Georgia

Birthplace: Macon, Ga.

The skinny: A hot month helped Henley earn his PGA Tour card. He finished 1st-3rd-1st in his three starts before the Web.com Tour Championship. He won twice this year, and won last year’s Stadion Classic while still an amateur.

• • •

4. Luke List*

Age: 27

College: Vanderbilt

Birthplace: Seattle, Wash.

The skinny: The long-hitting List is headed to the PGA Tour this year after collecting his first Web.com Tour title and three runner-up finishes. He led the Web.com Tour in driving distance (323.5 yards) and birdie average (4.22 per round).

• • •

5. James Hahn*

Age: 30

College: Cal-Berkeley

Birthplace: Seoul, South Korea

The skinny: Hahn, who once worked in a pro shop and as a shoe salesman while trying to raise money for his pro career, is now a PGA Tour player. He won this year’s Rex Hospital Open in North Carolina, then qualified the next day for the U.S. Open at a qualifier in Northern California. His runner-up at the Web.com Tour Championship moved him from 13th to fifth on the final money list.

• • •

6. Shawn Stefani*

Age: 30

College: Lamar

Birthplace: Baytown, Texas

The skinny: The Texan turned pro in 2005, but had played just one Web.com Tour event before this season. Now he’s headed to the PGA Tour after winning twice. He arrived at the Tour Championship ranked 11th in driving distance (305.5 per drive) and 12th in putting average (1.757 putts per green in regulation). He also ranks second in the tour’s all-around ranking.

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7. Robert Streb*

Age: 25

College: Kansas State

Birthplace: Chickasha, Okla.

The skinny: Streb, who turned pro in 2009, had made just four Web.com Tour starts before this season. He was one of the tour’s most consistent performers this year, finishing in the top 25 in 15 of 24 starts, including seven top 10s. He was fifth in putting average (1.743 putts per green in regulation) and second in scoring average (69.5 strokes per round).

• • •

8. Ben Kohles*

Age: 22

College: Virginia

Birthplace: Dallas

The skinny: Kohles made it look easy, becoming the first player to win a Web.com Tour event in his pro debut. He won at the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Invitational, then won the next week, as well. He was 36 under in those two weeks, averaging 66.5 strokes. He also played this year’s Wyndham Championship, finishing T-70.

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9. Justin Bolli

Age: 36

College: Georgia

Birthplace: Portland, Ore.

The skinny: Bolli arrived at the Web.com Tour Championship at No. 44 on the money list, but won the season finale to earn a return to the PGA Tour. It was Bolli’s fourth career Web.com Tour victory. He last played the PGA tour in 2010, finishing 215th on the money list after making just four cuts in 23 starts. Bolli has graduated the Web.com Tour four times.

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10. David Lingmerth*

Age: 25

College: Arkansas

Birthplace: Sweden

The skinny: Lingmerth clinched his PGA Tour card after a victory at the Neediest Kids Championship. He bogeyed Nos. 15 and 16 in the final round of last year’s season finale, the Web.com Tour Championship, and missed his PGA Tour card by one shot. He’s only made about half his cuts in two Web.com Tour seasons, but has four top-3 finishes in those two seasons.

• • •

11. Justin Hicks

Age: 38

College: Michigan

Birthplace: Wyandotte, Michigan

The skinny: Hicks celebrated his 38th birthday on the final round of the Web.com Tour Championship. He led the Tour in top-10 finishes (10 in 25 starts), thanks to strong ball-striking. He was seventh on tour in driving accuracy (72.37 percent) and led in greens in regulation (74.88 percent). Hicks also played in two majors this year, missing the cut by a shot at the U.S. Open and finishing 45th at this year’s Open Championship. He was 179th on the PGA Tour money list in 2011, his rookie season.

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12. Paul Haley*

Age: 24

College: Georgia Tech

Birthplace: Dallas

The skinny: Haley has only been a pro about a year. He turned pro after last year’s U.S. Amateur, then made his way to the Q-School finals to earn Web.com Tour status. He won his third Web.com Tour start, then finished second three starts later. The short-hitting Haley (122nd in driving distance) missed the cut at this year’s Byron Nelson, his only career PGA Tour start.

• • •

13. Cameron Percy

Age: 38

College: N/A

Birthplace: Australia

The skinny: The Australian used three runner-up finishes to earn his second PGA Tour card. He lost a playoff at the 2010 Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open on Jonathan Byrd’s hole-in-one in a sudden-death playoff. Percy was 145th on the 2010 PGA Tour money list. He was fourth on the Web.com Tour in greens in regulation (72.92 percent) this season. He was the highest-ranked player on the money list without a victory.

• • •

14. Andres Gonzales

Age: 29

College: UNLV

Birthplace: Olympia, Wash.

The skinny: The man known for his long locks and unique facial hair earned a return trip to the PGA Tour after winning the Web.com Tour’s Soboba Classic. He also finished 19th at the Byron Nelson Championship, one of three top-25 finishes in 25 career PGA Tour starts. He was a PGA Tour rookie in 2011, finishing 192nd on the money list. He earned less on the PGA Tour last year than he did on this year’s Web.com Tour.

• • •

15. Scott Gardiner*

Age: 36

College: N/A

Birthplace: Australia

The skinny: Gardiner used six top-10 finishes, including two runners-up, to earn his first PGA Tour card. He’s never appeared in a PGA Tour event. He was 20th on tour in driving distance (303.0 yards), 16th greens in regulation (71.2 percent) and 11th in putting average (1.756 putts per green in regulation) this season.

• • •

16. Lee Williams*

Age: 30

College: Auburn

Birthplace: Alexander City, Ala.

The skinny: Williams, a two-time member of the United States Walker Cup team (2003, ’05), is headed to the PGA Tour for the first time. He turned pro in 2005, but has played in fewer than 50 Web.com Tour events. This was just his second full year on the Web.com Tour after several near-misses at Q-School’s second stage.

• • •

17. Darron Stiles

Age: 39

College: Florida Southern

Birthplace: St. Petersburg, Fla.

The skinny: Stiles, a five-time winner on the Web.com Tour, is heading back to the PGA Tour once again. His instructor is Golf Channel personality Michael Breed. Stiles was fifth on the Web.com Tour in driving accuracy (73.43 percent), but 124th in driving distance (282.1 yards per tee shot).

• • •

18. Brad Fritsch*

Age: 34

College: Campbell

Birthplace: Canada

The skinny: Fritsch came on strong, finishing in the top 25 in four of seven starts entering the Web.com Tour Championship, including a runner-up, fourth-place finish and a T-10 at the Winn-Dixie Jacksonville Open.

• • •

19. Morgan Hoffmann*

Age: 23

College: Oklahoma State

Birthplace: Wyckoff, N.J.

The skinny: Hoffmann started the season without Web.com Tour status, but used sponsor exemptions and Monday qualifiers to piece together 13 starts on the Web.comTour schedule. He had seven top 10s in those 13 starts, including a playoff loss at the Chiquita Classic. He also finished 29th at this year’s U.S. Open. Hoffmann, a member of the 2009 U.S. Walker Cup team, turned pro after the 2011 NCAA Championship. He is No. 50 in the Golfweek/Sagarin pro rankings.

• • •

20. Brian Stuard

Age: 29

College: Oakland University

Birthplace: Jackson, Mich.

The skinny: Stuard is returning for the PGA Tour for the first time since his rookie season of 2010. He finished 154th on the money list that year, including a runner-up at Mayakoba. He was fourth on the Web.com Tour in scoring average (69.7 strokes).

• • •

21. Andrew Svoboda*

Age: 33

College: St. John’s

Birthplace: New Rochelle, N.Y.

The skinny: Svoboda will join former St. John’s golfer Keegan Bradley on the PGA Tour in 2013. Svoboda will be a PGA Tour rookie after posting two runner-up finishes this year. He was 13th in greens in regulation (71.4 percent) and ninth in putting average (1.75 putts per green in regulation), which explains why he ranked fourth on the Web.com Tour in birdie average (4.16 per round).

• • •

22. Nicholas Thompson

Age: 29

College: Georgia Tech

Birthplace: Plantation, Fla.

The skinny: Thompson is returning to the PGA Tour for the first time since 2010. He has nine top-10 finishes, including a runner-up finish, in 130 PGA Tour events. He’s earned $3,380,611 in his PGA Tour career. Thompson, the older brother of LPGA player Lexi Thompson, made the cut at this year’s U.S. Open.

• • •

23. Alistair Presnell*

Age: 33

College: N/A

Birthplace: Australia

The skinny: Presnell has played just two official PGA Tour events, but has been impressive in both. He finished 29th in this year’s U.S. Open and sixth in the 2010 World Golf Championships-CA Championship at Doral. Presnell posted a runner-up and two third-place finishes this season on the Web.com Tour.

• • •

24. Doug Labelle II

Age: 37

College: New Mexico

Birthplace: Mount Pleasant, Mich.

The skinny: Labelle used a T-13 at the Web.com Tour Championship to squeak into the top 25. He started the week at No. 26 on the money list. Labelle also won earlier this year at the Utah Championship.

• • •

25. Jim Herman

Age: 34

College: Cincinnati

Birthplace: Cincinnati, Ohio

The skinny: Herman was a PGA Tour rookie in 2011, earning just $196,845 to finish 189th on the money list. He tied for 14th at this year’s Shell Houston Open and missed the cut at the U.S. Open. He ranked 13th in driving distance this year (305.2 yards) and was 21st in greens in regulation (71.06 percent), but 116th in putting.